


So now we think we've made it

by estei



Series: A cats and dogs love song [2]
Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Fluff, Just Add Kittens, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-07
Updated: 2016-02-07
Packaged: 2018-05-18 17:02:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5936143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/estei/pseuds/estei
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chuck is mad. </p><p>And there are unexpected kittens. </p><p>These two things might be related.</p>
            </blockquote>





	So now we think we've made it

**Author's Note:**

  * For [GutterBall](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GutterBall/gifts).



> A little birthday ficlet for GutterBall, who deserves lots of fluffy kitten smooshes.

Chuck was perhaps a little testy as he climbed the stairs to Raleigh’s apartment, the handles of the plastic shopping bags digging into his palm and one shoulder hiked up awkwardly to keep his satchel from sliding off. He didn’t care what Raleigh said, the damned elevator made noises that were very worrisome and only a fool would dare to step inside the deathtrap-in-waiting. He was sweating under his sports coat when he finally reached the flat door and fairly growling as he tried to redistribute his varied bags long enough to shove the key into the lock. He was tired and cranky and the shop had been an absolutely madhouse with the impending long weekend and all Chuck wanted was his boyfriend, and a beer, and probably the beer first. 

His mood was not helped by the absurd antics he’d been subjected to before even leaving the office earlier that evening. 

_“Headed home, are we, Chuck?” Tendo asked as Chuck began shutting down his computer. Chuck scowled at the man who took endless delight in making himself an absolutely nuisance, confused as to what game Tendo was playing this time._

_“Not spending the weekend in the office, no.” he said gruffly, hoping that the bloke would take the hint and shove off._

_“Right, of course not,” Tendo nodded, and folded his arms over his skinny chest. “It must be nice, now that you don’t have that long commute.”_

_“Are you getting a point, Elvis?” Chuck asked, smirking when Tendo frowned at the use of the nickname. The dark look the bloke shot him was a little alarming, but there was no harm in winding his nemesis up every now and again-_

_“Well, now that you’ve moved in with Raleigh.”_

_“I’ve not,” Chuck said, perhaps a bit loudly by the way Yancy swung to look at him, suddenly interested in the conversation, brow furrowed and good Christ, Chuck did not need this right now. “I’ve not moved in, just, I stay there sometimes.”_

_“Sometimes?” Tendo said archly, and Chuck felt his face flush but before he could work himself into a real state, Yancy stepped in. Literally._

_“Come on, Tendo, it’s none of your business,” Yancy scolded, tugging on the bloke’s arm and physically pulling him away from Chuck’s desk. Tendo grumbled, but went willingly, and Yancy smiled over his shoulder. “I’ll see you on Sunday, Chuck. Don’t let Rals forget that he promised to make that bean dip.”_

Goddamn stickybeak Elvis. What was it to him, where Chuck stayed? So he spent most of his nights at Raleigh’s place, it just made sense. It was closer to work, and if he wanted to spend time with his boyfriend, without interference from either of their families, they certainly couldn’t be in La Grange. 

Maybe Raleigh had been hinting lately that it could be a permanent arrangement, but Chuck just wasn’t ready for that. They’d been dating for eight months, sure, and Chuck’s bed felt cold and empty when did crash at his parents’ house, but living together, that was another matter altogether. Things were working so well, and Chuck wasn’t keen on upsetting that balance. He’d never got on with anyone like this, and he couldn’t help but fear there was a catch somewhere, or that he’d muck it up somehow. Raleigh was, well, Chuck didn’t really know how to explain what Raleigh was, what he meant to him, Christ knew Mako had made him try, those months before she had been able to come home and meet him herself over the Christmas holiday. Chuck had been secretly delighted by how quickly Mako had taken to Raleigh, right off the bat, and then not so secretly annoyed when she and Stacker and Herc started exchanging knowing and approving glances every time Raleigh had entered a room. And Yancy, who was as emotionally stunted as ever, almost preened with all the attention his beloved little brother was getting. Chuck had half feared the lot of them was on the verge of bringing up wedding invites before Christmas Day dawned, and instead of feeling pleased that all the family members were so supportive, the first tendrils of dread started to creep in. What if he cocked it all up? Not only could he lose Raleigh, but he couldn’t bear to think of his father looking at him with disappointment again, like the bloke in front of him was a stranger, and not his own son. 

And, anyway, if Chuck did move in, what would happen with Max? It wouldn’t be fair to keep Max shut up in an apartment all day, not when he was used to a big house, and Chuck barely saw him now as it was. It was all a lot to consider, and Chuck was just being responsible and considerate to all parties involved by not rushing into anything. Emotional spur-of-the-moment decisions was really more in Raleigh’s wheelhouse, so Chuck really shouldn’t have been as surprised as he was by what greeted him in the living room once he’d finally gained entry and divested himself of his cargo. 

“What the hell,” Chuck said, hands planted on his hips as he surveyed the scene before him. Raleigh was stretched out on the floor, cheeks flushed and laughing as he cuddled not one, but _two_ balls of fur to his chest. 

“Chuck, look how cute,” Raleigh extended one of the kittens toward him, and Chuck was not made of stone, okay, the scrap of fur fit perfectly in Raleigh’s wide palm and the little thing yawned, poking out a pink tongue and, dammit, this was unacceptable. 

“What are these… _things_ doing here, Raleigh?” Chuck refused to get any closer, or feel guilty at the way Raleigh’s smile dropped as he pulled the kitten back into his chest. 

“Marlene, the administrator at the office, she’s been fostering a whole litter of kittens for the animal rescue she volunteers for, but her son got divorced, and moved back in, which is a whole can of worms I wish I knew less about, but he’s allergic to cats so she had to rehome them all pretty quickly, and I’ve been thinking of getting a new cat for a while, and they’re so little, and cute.” Raleigh set the little blighters down on the floor, but the immediately started clawing their way back over his sprawled legs, mewling as they stumbled across his lap and shoved their little noses into his belly. 

It was not adorable. At all. 

“You didn’t think to, I don’t know, consult me before bringing two cats home?” Chuck snapped, gesturing in the direction of Raleigh’s lap and feeling more than a little silly doing so. 

“Consult you?” Raleigh’s eyes widened and his brow arched. Chuck was starting to feel like he might not be on solid ground with his complaint after all, in fact it might be thin ice under his feet right now. He certainly did not care for the obvious ‘I’m trying to be patient with you right now’ tone Raleigh was taking. “Chuck, I asked you to move in and you said no, and that’s fine, but you don’t get to have it both ways, okay? Either this is my place, or it’s ours.” 

“I didn’t say no, I said not yet, so for you to just-“ Chuck waved his hands as he tried to find the words for how unreasonable Raleigh was being, but all that came out was a garbled, angry sound and so he spun on his heel and made a tactical retreat, to the kitchen, where there was beer, and hopefully an absence of kittens. 

He stood at the counter, facing the cabinets, and braced his palms on the surface, trying to marshal his thoughts into some kind of order. To be honest, Chuck was taken a bit off-guard by his own reaction. Hell, he’d encouraged Raleigh to adopt a new cat, and maybe it hadn’t come up recently, but it wasn’t completely outside the realm of possibility that a feline friend would one day appear. 

Chuck was so deep in thought he almost jumped when he felt Raleigh’s touch between his shoulders, rubbing at the tensed muscles there. 

“Are you really mad?” Raleigh asked quietly, and Chuck turned, and sighed at the somber look on the bloke’s face. 

“No, I don’t know,” he turned and stepped into the embrace he knew would be offered if asked, and sighed again, with relief this time, when Raleigh pulled him in close. He nuzzled into the curve of Raleigh’s neck, as close to an apology as he could manage at the moment. “Tendo was giving me a hard time tonight, about the whole moving in thing.” 

“I don’t want to pressure you, I definitely don’t want Tendo pressuring you, but… you might be right. I should have asked.” Raleigh murmured, and Chuck tightened his grip, snuggling in closer to that strong chest. 

“S’alright,” he said. “It sounds like a spur of the moment situation. And, I guess they are pretty cute.” 

Chuck graciously did not mention how Raleigh shook, obviously with laughter, in his arms. 

“Can I introduce you?” Raleigh pulled back, and looked so damn hopeful that Chuck felt the last of his objections slide away, like water down a drain. 

“Let’s get this over with,” Chuck griped, obviously for show, and Raleigh took his hand and pulled him into the living room. The kittens, little balls of white fur with grey and black markings, were romping across a knitted throw, laid out on the hardwood floor. Raleigh bent down and scooped the smallest one up first. 

“This is Waffles, she’s the runt of the litter,” he held her out to Chuck, who clutched her almost clumsily to his chest. “And this is her big brother, Fritz.” 

“Please tell me you are not responsible for these ridiculous names.” Chuck groaned, laughing at Raleigh’s insulted expression. “Oh, love, of course you are. Who else could come up with something so dorky?” 

“You’re the dork,” Raleigh grumbled, holding Fritz up so he could nuzzle the top of his furry head. “Don’t you agree, Fritzie?” 

“Fritzie? Come on, Becket, have some dignity.” Chuck pleaded, though he was well distracted by the enthusiastic purring that _Waffles_ was emanating as he scratched under her chin. 

“What? Waffles and Fritz, it suits them.” Raleigh insisted, stepping close enough that the two little furballs were warm between them. He pressed a kiss to the corner of Chuck’s mouth, and Chuck turned his head so he could capture those lips properly. 

“You know what,” Chuck said, between light kisses, “It kinda does.” 

“I knew it,” Raleigh said, eyes shining, and Chuck knew then he could never deny the bloke anything, not if it put a look of such happiness on his face. No need to let Raleigh know that, though. 

“Don’t get cocky, ya bastard. If either one of these little blighters so much as thinks about pissing on anything of mine, I’ll take it outta your hide.” 

“Oh yeah?” Raleigh reached out and snagged Waffles from Chuck’s hands, and set the two kittens down on the floor, safely out of the way, before stepping close and sliding his arms around Chuck’s waist, bumping their hips together. “I think we can work something out.” 

Returning Raleigh’s wicked grin with one of his own, Chuck cupped that precious face and kissed the bloke sweetly. 

“Yeah, I think we can.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was wholly inspired by my discovery of an awesome instagram account about a litter of kittens being fostered, in particular by a little brother/sister duo, who can be seen in all their cuteness here: https://instagram.com/p/BBNxGWXoyXB/


End file.
